Why do you own a GSD ? - Page 1

Somehow all of us became affected to the breed.
I grew up with working dogs ( my grandparents always owned and trained them, I was with them almost every day, not restricted to GSDs only, though ).

My parents didn´t own dogs, I had to beg for my first "own" dog for years.
When I was 15 I got a Dalmatian ( my mother liked them, and my parents thought a "working dog" would be too much for a teenager ).
I went to a DVG club almost immediately, trialed in BH ( 1978 ? ), but realized pretty soon that the "working abilities" of my dog were very restricted compared to breeds like GSD, Dobermann, Rottweiler ( during that time several good working dog breeds around ).

I started to train the non pedigreed GSD of a club member for SchHIII, soon later another GSD of another club member ( SchHII ). When this male mated his sister (!) I got a puppy "for free"...my first "own" GSD...

My parents didn´t want a second dog at home, so I ( 17 years old at that time ) rented a "schrebergarten", where I kept the pup...raised and trained it, no car, only a bicycle ( the Dalmatian with me all the time, no supportv from home ).

I was not only addicted by the working ability of the GSDs compared to my "pet dog",but by their overall temperament, will to please, and athletisism.
Today, looking back, none of them have been "outstanding", but still good enough to make me fall in love with the GSD breed.
In case some club member would have given me a Rottweiler, I might be addicted to Rottweilers by now, but it happened to be not only one, but two GSDs.

( The Dalmatian became 13 years old, he was good at tracking, okay at obedience, but shit at bitework, although we even trained "civil" with him / muzzle and bite suit - a lot of fun during that time ).

How did YOU fall in love with the breed?

When I was 17, I went to work at a kennel that sold pups all breeds. Among them were 2 pups I thought were labs (ears were floppy) and I was told they were black GSD. I told my Mom about them and she swore me to secrecy. My Dad had always wanted a solid black GSD. So we ended up getting one of the pups for my Dad for Christmas. He really thought he was getting a smoker and was royally pissed that I had to go in to 'work' on Christmas Day. When in reality, I had to go pick the pup up. When I put that pup in my Dad's lap, (we made him close his eyes)...that was the only time I ever saw him cry.

I took her for puppy ob classes and she was super smart and was best her class.. My Dad took that dog EVERYWHERE with him. I was hooked on them from then on.

Me, i had fond memories as a todler being left behind all alone in a crib (that was until i was 5) watching re-runs of "the Adventures of RinTinTin". During Grade School until my Teenage years (in the 80's) ive always had pet GSD pups which i sneak and get inside the house even upto my room when my parents were not around. Although we had some non-pedigreed dogs (mongrel GSDs) left behind by the Armed Forces in the Far East, i was lucky enough my parents bought me my 1st Pedigreed GSD w/c i named KITT (Michael Knight Riders talking black car) i think, my Dad was the one who got hooked to Purebred dogs that time since he was Dog Showing and buying on impulse. i remember we owned a Dober, a Boxer, a Dal. and a Rott, all kennelled. But those where my Dads, i only had just one preference which is my buddy, the "un-altered" wolf-like GSD.

Like you, Susie, I grew up in a household without dogs. My Mum told me that while she lived in the house with just her parents, they'd had dogs : one a Red Setter that had been epileptic, the last an Airedale named Terry. Dunno how pure bred. One or two others. Then she got married and my dad joined the household. Mum always made it sound like they had Terry put down because she fell pregnant with me. As I grew up, I was one of those little kids who falls in love with every dog in sight, and is always pulling the parents towards other people's dogs to get to stroke them ! Quite opposite to my little brother, who was always wary of all dogs. So I was clearly born in the wrong home.

As I grew older and more independent I was always enticing stray dogs home with me; at 11 years old I started to walk the dogs of neighbours so I could get my paws on canines. I built up a circle of clients whose dogs I would exercise in my spare time, including a Boxer-owning teacher at my school, and would also mind while they were on holiday or away over night, go and feed if the owner was going to be late home, etc. At 13 I started helping with a young male GSD kept by a local haulage firm as the protection dog for their yard. Just as well my dad had left us by then, Mum told me he was "Alsatianphobic" so he might have put his foot down & stopped me; certainly I would not have been able to have gallumphing great Guard Dogs running around my home, as I eventually did ! I had already begun to show some preference for the breed, over other dogs, but exercising and feeding Titch put the seal on it; the firm aquired a bitch to go with him, Mandy, who was the first pedigree papered animal I'd had my hands on. Looking at her pedigree got me hooked further, on that 'formal' side of the GSD breed, and provided the springboard for me to research deeper, starting the now quite extensive library of books on the breed, dog showing and breeding, dog genetics, catalogues and breed memorabilia etc that I hold today. Titch & Mandy produced litters of puppies; which meant I got to see and assist with the whole process of caring for a pregnant bitch, whelping, weaning, sales, for the first time. All of which brought me ever closer to this little Sable female, who even after all these years I still regard as my 'heart dog', even though I did not own her.

Come to that, because of the way things have worked out, I have had several very deep & meaningful relationships with particular GS dogs I never actually owned !

Thank you for the opportunity to "walk down Memory Lane".

I wasn't allowed to have any sort of furry animal while I was living at home, as my brother had allergies. This was very frustrating, as I had a very strong interest in animals of all kinds.

When I moved out on my own, I didn't have a steady job, and was living in rented accommodation. Most renters have very strict no-pet rules, though I was able to get away with having a cat.

Then, one day, I was visiting my uncle on his farm, and saw this pathetic bag of bones lying underneath his kitchen table. It was a female GSD that had belonged to a neighbour of his. The neighbour had to go into a nursing home, and my uncle had promised to look after his dog.

"Would you like a dog?" he asked me. "We don't want her, because she's useless as a farm dog. She's scared of the cows, and won't even kill a groundhog."

"We had a beggar come by the other day, and we put her outside, hoping she'd chase him off," my aunt put in. "When we looked outside, he was sitting on our garden bench, and she had her head in his lap!"

"I don't know," I said. "I'm living in a high rise, and I'm not supposed to have a pet."

But the dog was so pitifully thin, I was genuinely concerned for her, so I asked a friend who also was living in an apartment, and had a GSD.

"Give it a try," he urged me. "They can't really do anything unless the dog is causing problems."

I already knew of several people in my building who had dogs, so I decided to take his advice. After I brought her home, she had a total of two accidents in my apartment before she learned the rules.

Of course, one of the first things I did was take her to the vet. He weighed her, and found she was only 35 lbs. She was 5 years old, and 26" tall, so that put her in the severely underweight/emaciated/call-the-SPCA category. He shook his head, and said, "I can't say for sure this dog is going to live."

"My aunt told me she wouldn't eat", I said, "but the dog food she was giving her was crawling with insect larva. Let me try to get some good food into her, and see how she does."

He also diagnosed her with pannus (degenerative keratitis) but told me it wasn't all that bad, and could be kept in check with eyedrops.

With lots of love and good food, I eventually got her weight up to 70 lbs., but she was always a bit of a picky eater. Once I knew she was going to live, I went to a veterinary eye specialist, who got the pannus under control with steroids.

In the fall, we enrolled in obedience classes, at the beginner level. After we'd had about 4 or 5 weeks of classes, the obedience club sponsored a fun match. The match included a number of things we hadn't learned yet, like a 3 minute down-stay, and a figure of 8 off-leash, but I entered her anyway, and was extremely proud when she scored 175 out of 200 points!

That started my love affair with the breed. As GSD's go, she had almost NO protective instinct, but she was very smart, great with kids, and a wonderful companion. A friend of mine who used to walk her for me provided daycare for her niece's little girl. She told me the girl took some of her first steps hanging on to Lili's collar for support!

As a child I just always wanted one~

I had an irresistible longing for them. That has never wavered ! :) 

 

Why do I own a GSD: Brains, Beauty & Unique personalities.

I've been blessed with 12 rescues, 2 fosters and my own 8 raised from puppies.  We've been involved in SAR-tracking/trailing, extensive obedience, agility, nosework and dabbled in Schutzhund.  I've worked with other breeds & mixes and just haven't found the same qualities.